What if we told you there was a simple way to burn more fat and lose weight without overhauling your entire diet? Washington State University researchers say it’s possible—and by eating certain fruits no less, something many health-minded people already do every day! To come to this finding, researchers put mice on a high-fat diet and gave half of them resveratrol (a compound found in berries, apples, wine and grapes) in amounts that, relative to body size, would be the equivalent of three servings of fruit per day for humans. Because the resveratrol converted the animals’ excess white fat into calorie-burning beige fat, the resveratrol group was 40 percent less likely to become obese than the control group.

Why not just drink long-lauded wine to reap the health and weight loss benefits? In short, because it’s far less effective than eating fruit. “Wines like merlot or cabernet sauvignon...contain only a fraction of resveratrol and other phenolic compounds found in grapes,” says research author, Min Du. In fact, according to Du, "many of the beneficial polyphenols are insoluble and get filtered out during the wine production process.” The best way to boost your consumption of polyphenol compounds is by directly increasing fruit consumption, Du adds. Though all fruits contain the compound, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, grapes and apples are the best sources.

Make a healthy smoothie with berries, dip apples in Greek yogurt sprinkled with cinnamon, or whip up a simple fruit salad that includes grapes and other fresh produce to hit the three daily servings. Though the study was in animals and not people, the researchers say their discovery could help scientists develop new strategies for the prevention and treatment of obesity in people. Plus, the body can only benefit from the vitamins and nutrients from additional fruit in your diet.